5 reasons to use SMS marketing

SMS marketing is a technique based on sending text messages or SMS to the mobile devices of subscribers who have previously agreed to receive these communications.

‍

A study conducted by Fanplayr, highlights that SMS marketing strategies are a way to easily reach the millennial audience (between 18 and 24 years old) and that almost 80% of smartphone users base their purchase decisions on the content received by SMS.

‍

On the other hand, the purposes of SMS can be very different, such as sending offers, news, reminders, order status, etc. Therefore, it is important to previously define our objectives as eCommerce to achieve an appropriate SMS marketing strategy.

‍

Therefore, according to their purpose, SMS can be of two types, depending on whether they are massive and are sent to many recipients or are "one to one", the first being "promotional SMS", which communicate promotions or general information and the second "transactional SMS", that is, those that are intended for a specific subscriber based on their behavior, such as notifications of payments or orders.

‍

The following are the main reasons for using SMS marketing strategies.

‍

1. High and immediate open rate

SMS have a 98% open rate, compared to the 25% open rate of email marketing campaigns, which makes them a very effective channel for communicating with our eCommerce customers.

‍

In addition, SMS stand out for being opened immediately, unlike emails, which are checked daily, but not urgently, therefore, being a direct channel we can use it to send important messages that must be read urgently.

‍

As these are messages that are frequently opened at the moment they are received, we must take special care when sending the SMS, as this will be decisive for its effectiveness. For example, consumers will negatively value SMS messages sent after hours or on holidays.

‍

2. Customizable

SMS allows personalization of the sender, which helps subscribers recognize your brand immediately upon receiving the message. In addition, you can add links to responsive landing pages, social networks, etc. and include emoticons to tailor the SMS to your business objectives and tone.

‍

3. Little exploited channel

Despite being an old messaging channel, it is not as saturated in the business environment as email or social networks, which allows you to differentiate your eCommerce against your competition.

‍

In addition, it is a key strategy to use in emerging markets, where Internet access is not as common, as it is a channel that does not require it.

‍

4. Low cost

Sending SMS is one of the most economically profitable marketing strategies, since it achieves a high return on investment at a low cost.

‍

Other techniques such as paid advertising or email marketing require a much higher investment, either due to the purchase of space or the need to use paid editing tools. Likewise, the investment of time and personnel is also lower, since they are simple messages that do not require complicated creativities or designs.

‍

5.    Effective channel

SMS, as we have mentioned, have a high open rate, which means that they are effective in reaching your eCommerce subscribers, but not only that, the response rate of SMS is over 20% (compared to 6% for emails), which means that if the message we want to send requires a response, sending it by SMS is an effective way to get it.

‍

Also, the conversion rate of SMS is 20-27%, a very high percentage compared to other channels such as television and emails, where the conversion rate is around 2%.

‍

The effectiveness of SMS will increase when combined with other channels such as social networks, advertising or email, where messages can be longer and with more attractive content, since SMS is limited to 160 characters per message.

‍

Now that you know the benefits of using SMS marketing, don't hesitate to use it in your eCommerce marketing strategy and combine it with other marketing channels to increase its effectiveness.

‍

‍